This is going to be my next phone. I cant wait to get out of the mainstream phone market. I barely use my phone for anything but browsing the web so it shouldbe fine.
None of my existing chargers supported the fastest protocols that my device from a few years ago supported, and it didn’t come with one. Also, what if you’re getting a device for the first time and actually don’t have any? At least it should maybe be an option when buying one so you can decide not to get one if you don’t need it, but a new device should come with everything needed to operate it.
They still come with a power cable and a controller though, which are necessary to actually turn on the machine. If you don’t already have a charger and didn’t notice that the device you’re getting doesn’t come with one, you probably can’t even turn it on to see if it works before having to buy more things.
Do they come with HDMI cables? Haven’t bought one in a while but back in the day my Nintendo consoles didn’t come with RF adapters. I remember Christmas 97 and not having one for my N64 and it drove me insane.
You can order one with the phone, I think. I don’t see it as a missing part, but rather one that is not automatically billed whether or not I need one.
We are long past the days of proprietary charging ports on phones, my guy. You can use any charger that came with any phone you’ve owned in the past like 10 years.
If you’re savvy enough to buy a Fairphone you likely have a gajillion USB-C cables and adapters laying around. I appreciate them not generating more waste.
When I got my FP3, I needed a new USBC cable as I was upgrading from a Galaxy S5. To be honest, my (now broken) Galaxy S5 still has its original charger in the box, since I reused my S4 charger for it.
Nowadays though it should be pretty common for people jumping to an FP or other USBC device to at least have an existing USBC cable kicking around I think
It will be deGoogled soon enough. The Fairphone 4 is supported across several deGoogled versions of Android including CalyxOS, iodéOS, LineageOS, DivestOS and /e/OS. The Fairphone 3 and even the 2 are also supported by some of those operating systems.
CalyxOS is the most advanced of those I mentioned. They have a monthly update schedule and a larger team. My favourite is iodéOS, though, because of the iodé ad and tracker blocker app which can be used simultaneously with a VPN.
No, I mean it runs system wide and can block ads and trackers from any application. There are definitely no ads in the OS lol
Normally these ad and tracker blocking apps are detected as a VPN by Android, which means you cannot use a real VPN at the same time. iode’s blocker is unique in this area.
Lineage is the oldest one (Divest and /e/ are forks of it). Calyx has a focus on security and privacy (comes with a free VPN with no signup requires). Currzntly Calyx is based on Android 13, even on the Fairphone 4 which doesn’t have it supportes. I son’t know enough about iodé to comment about it though.
Well, IPx5 is technically water resistant for water jets and up to 12.5 liters per minute. I think that sounds enough to be used it rain. I also saw some reviews of other devices that even IPx4 is fine in rain.
Doesn’t seem like there are any waterproof cases for the 4, so I doubt we will see any for the 5. Maybe more likely now that the phone is available in the US at least. Not a fan of the waterproof bag idea myself.
At least my tank bag has the option for a waterproof cell phone pocket though, I doubt the touch screen would work through the thick plastic. Never tried it because I don’t have the pouch required to keep the phone in place on the bag.
That’s not what I mean when I talk about a case, I mean something I can keep on all of the time. Something like an otterbox fre would be more appropriate. Or the old lifeproof cases like I had for my iPhone 4S. I live in a climate where it is pretty much always raining. My Pixel 3 can get drenched to the point you cant even use the touch screen anymore with no issues. Plus it can mount straight to my handlebars with a quadlock case instead of having to put on my tank bag and strap it to that.
Looks pretty nice tbh! Probably going to stick to my current phone a few more years until it stops being updated but if I manage to break it this might just be the replacement.
This is a pretty great phone, I just wouldn’t spend this much on a phone. Even if it lasts let’s say 6 years, I can buy 3-4 mid range androids at this price & as the years go by they could be far better than this one near the end.
Also while Iphones are really hard to repair, they do last very long & there are people out there who can replace my iphone battery for like $40 and it too would last 5-6 years. (a recent enough refurbished SE for example)
I think a very small percentage of users would justify a purchase on repair-ability & sustainability alone (privacy is not it!), if it does not save them at least a little money in the long run and as things are it does not. If it was just a bit cheaper they could sell 10x as many units & normal people like me would be happy. I think this is reasonable to ask for, yes the phone is more expensive to make, but software support is not nearly as expensive as you think. Android is very easy to update and port these days, sure it’s like 4 engineer salaries to keep some degree of testing running alongside development, but if they sold more devices, then the relative cost would go way down.
Then again, if they can maintain profitability by targeting that niche market it’s good for them, I just wish someone took ‘right to repair’ & ‘right to own’ to the masses.
The problem is, paying fair wages, sourcing fair materials und make sure the phone ist repairable and lasts longer will always be more expensive than let’s say Xiaomi. If the phone lasts for example six years instead of the usual two they will only sell a third of the phones other manufactures will sell, even if they reach the same customer base.
If it a) comes to the US, and b) comes with stock Android out of the box, I might get it for my next phone. Currently leaning toward a Pixel with Graphene.
Wish it was available here in India. i would have totally bought this for my father.
Repairing these phones is better than buying new ones when he barely does anything other than WhatsApp, youtube and calls.
I didn’t mean in the sense that it’s been more practical. I was replying more to the idea that repairing being better isn’t dependent on a phone getting very light usage which is what they seemed to be impying.
Very few new phone features released in the last 5 years or so add very much real value for very many people.
Threads for Fairphone often fill up with “it’s not going to work if they don’t X.” Lots of people don’t seem to understand that their personal viewpoint can be quite different from other’s.
There are people who are aware of the trade-offs of a Fairphone, but still choose to get one.
I’ve always been in favour of a phone with a shitty camera. I don’t give a fuck about posting on social media, and these days a huge chunk of a phone’s price is determined by how powerful of a camera they were able to cram into it.
I recognize that this apparently sounds insane to most people.
In terms of BOM the cameras usually aren’t even that much. It’s just one factor that allows them to differentiate “premium” phones they can gouge more for.
It’s nice to have a decent camera, but honestly, 90% of the people (including myself) are so bad at taking pictures, that the difference between mid range and ultra premium is almost zero.
The only thing that’s really really cool is night mode. My Pixel can take really great photos with extremely low light levels.
Their website doesn’t seem to specify which GSM bands it has (simply “More Bands and Band-Combinations for better reception”). I want to know how much of a given provider’s spectrum I’d be missing out on trying to sneak one of these to the states.
TL;DR: By adding band 66, Fairphone 5 has better compatibility with cellular network providers in the USA. Band 48 also gives better compatibility with Verizon. T-Mobile is still the best for Fairphone in the USA.
Thanks! Yeah, it looks like it covers T-mobile minus the GHZ/ mmWave bands, which is good for me. A solid consider, especially if they (eventually) drag it over to the states like the Fairphone 5.
Interesting how they went for an IoT SoC (Qualcomm QCM 6490), instead for an SoC that’s actually meant for usage in phones.
They probably did this to be able to get longer Android updates. As a side effect, that means it natively supports desktop Ubuntu and Windows 11 IoT Enterprise.
On the other hand, this is pretty much the only phone using this SoC. (There are three models by a totally unknown brand from India that use the same SoC.)
It’s going to be interesting to see whether that’s an advantage or a disadvantage.
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This is going to be my next phone. I cant wait to get out of the mainstream phone market. I barely use my phone for anything but browsing the web so it shouldbe fine.
Me too! I’m using my phone for more than browsing, but it will my next phone!
Fairphone Fold when?
Fairphold
I really wish it had a 3.5mm audio jack. I don’t see what companies stand to earn, other than money, when they remove the headphone jack.
I can see why Apple and Samsung removed it because the they can market their own wireless headphones.
Removing the jack only removes capability, it is not like older phones didn’t have the capability to connect to Bluetooth headphones
Yeah their original excuse to remove it was largely related to space due to the modular design.
If you want to read it is here.
https://support.fairphone.com/hc/en-us/articles/9836188988049-Audio-jack-3-5mm
get wit the times
They don’t even send a charger anymore…
How is that bad? Go to your drawer and use one of the dozens you’ll have accumulated over the years
None of my existing chargers supported the fastest protocols that my device from a few years ago supported, and it didn’t come with one. Also, what if you’re getting a device for the first time and actually don’t have any? At least it should maybe be an option when buying one so you can decide not to get one if you don’t need it, but a new device should come with everything needed to operate it.
With that I agree, it should be a option to buy one.
It’s not hard to buy a separate charger if you need one.
Just like game consoles no longer come with bundled games despite being useless without a game. You’re big enough to know what you need.
They still come with a power cable and a controller though, which are necessary to actually turn on the machine. If you don’t already have a charger and didn’t notice that the device you’re getting doesn’t come with one, you probably can’t even turn it on to see if it works before having to buy more things.
Do they come with HDMI cables? Haven’t bought one in a while but back in the day my Nintendo consoles didn’t come with RF adapters. I remember Christmas 97 and not having one for my N64 and it drove me insane.
Phones are generaly charged because its better for the battery but i am not saying that im not miffed about chargers no longer inkluded
only micro usb and very slow charging bricks in there
You can order one with the phone, I think. I don’t see it as a missing part, but rather one that is not automatically billed whether or not I need one.
You don’t accumulate that many if you don’t buy phones every year or two, and then as mentioned, over more time your charger needs could’ve changed.
The charger shouldn’t be only thing that’s built to last.
But unfortunately its very common for people to change phones often
We are long past the days of proprietary charging ports on phones, my guy. You can use any charger that came with any phone you’ve owned in the past like 10 years.
If you’re savvy enough to buy a Fairphone you likely have a gajillion USB-C cables and adapters laying around. I appreciate them not generating more waste.
if you buy a fairphone maybe you do not buy new devices every year
When I got my FP3, I needed a new USBC cable as I was upgrading from a Galaxy S5. To be honest, my (now broken) Galaxy S5 still has its original charger in the box, since I reused my S4 charger for it.
Nowadays though it should be pretty common for people jumping to an FP or other USBC device to at least have an existing USBC cable kicking around I think
Wish it was degoogled. I’d love one, but… android 🤢 privacy hell
Pixel 6a you can find for 250-300 and flash graphene.
It doesn’t have a 3,5mm jack or a microsd slot
Good luck with that headphone jack on the Fairphone
oh don’t worry, i ain’t holding out hope
Well yes. But I want a NEW phone
Pixel 7a is like 500
You get a slightly newer chip. G2 vs G1. New new costs
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The link complains about me not being in France haha. 404 when switching countries.
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It will be deGoogled soon enough. The Fairphone 4 is supported across several deGoogled versions of Android including CalyxOS, iodéOS, LineageOS, DivestOS and /e/OS. The Fairphone 3 and even the 2 are also supported by some of those operating systems.
If you were to pick the most mature one, which would you choose?
CalyxOS is the most advanced of those I mentioned. They have a monthly update schedule and a larger team. My favourite is iodéOS, though, because of the iodé ad and tracker blocker app which can be used simultaneously with a VPN.
Is that ad and tracker blocker just browser level or are there… ads in the OS?!
No, I mean it runs system wide and can block ads and trackers from any application. There are definitely no ads in the OS lol
Normally these ad and tracker blocking apps are detected as a VPN by Android, which means you cannot use a real VPN at the same time. iode’s blocker is unique in this area.
Oh I gotcha.
Lineage is the oldest one (Divest and /e/ are forks of it). Calyx has a focus on security and privacy (comes with a free VPN with no signup requires). Currzntly Calyx is based on Android 13, even on the Fairphone 4 which doesn’t have it supportes. I son’t know enough about iodé to comment about it though.
The Fairphone 2, 3/3+ and 4 can also run PostmarketOS (Linux) and Ubuntu touch IIRC
Edit: add Fp2 to list
I wonder if IP55 is enough to mount to motorcycle handlebars in heavy rain.
Well, IPx5 is technically water resistant for water jets and up to 12.5 liters per minute. I think that sounds enough to be used it rain. I also saw some reviews of other devices that even IPx4 is fine in rain.
Doubt it but for that use an otterbox case or similar would be your best friend, hell nowadays you can mount phones within a waterproof bag.
Doesn’t seem like there are any waterproof cases for the 4, so I doubt we will see any for the 5. Maybe more likely now that the phone is available in the US at least. Not a fan of the waterproof bag idea myself.
At least my tank bag has the option for a waterproof cell phone pocket though, I doubt the touch screen would work through the thick plastic. Never tried it because I don’t have the pouch required to keep the phone in place on the bag.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=waterproof+case+fairphone+4&crid=2JFUZZS054163&sprefix=waterproof+case+fairphone+4%2Caps%2C2016&ref=nb_sb_noss
???
That’s not what I mean when I talk about a case, I mean something I can keep on all of the time. Something like an otterbox fre would be more appropriate. Or the old lifeproof cases like I had for my iPhone 4S. I live in a climate where it is pretty much always raining. My Pixel 3 can get drenched to the point you cant even use the touch screen anymore with no issues. Plus it can mount straight to my handlebars with a quadlock case instead of having to put on my tank bag and strap it to that.
Oh wow, that sounds like an infinitely better experience.
Does OtterBox make cases for Fairphone?
Not the literal brand, no, but there are dozens of knockoff waterproof cases for exactly fairphone 4 on amazon.
Edit: No.
still waiting for the next unfairphone release
September 12th for the new iPhone.
a day after the
Looks pretty nice tbh! Probably going to stick to my current phone a few more years until it stops being updated but if I manage to break it this might just be the replacement.
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This is a pretty great phone, I just wouldn’t spend this much on a phone. Even if it lasts let’s say 6 years, I can buy 3-4 mid range androids at this price & as the years go by they could be far better than this one near the end.
Also while Iphones are really hard to repair, they do last very long & there are people out there who can replace my iphone battery for like $40 and it too would last 5-6 years. (a recent enough refurbished SE for example)
Something tells me you missed the point of the Fairphone…
I think a very small percentage of users would justify a purchase on repair-ability & sustainability alone (privacy is not it!), if it does not save them at least a little money in the long run and as things are it does not. If it was just a bit cheaper they could sell 10x as many units & normal people like me would be happy. I think this is reasonable to ask for, yes the phone is more expensive to make, but software support is not nearly as expensive as you think. Android is very easy to update and port these days, sure it’s like 4 engineer salaries to keep some degree of testing running alongside development, but if they sold more devices, then the relative cost would go way down.
Then again, if they can maintain profitability by targeting that niche market it’s good for them, I just wish someone took ‘right to repair’ & ‘right to own’ to the masses.
The problem is, paying fair wages, sourcing fair materials und make sure the phone ist repairable and lasts longer will always be more expensive than let’s say Xiaomi. If the phone lasts for example six years instead of the usual two they will only sell a third of the phones other manufactures will sell, even if they reach the same customer base.
If it a) comes to the US, and b) comes with stock Android out of the box, I might get it for my next phone. Currently leaning toward a Pixel with Graphene.
b) is already given and a) depends on whether you’ll find someone to bring it to you.
b) is not already given. The only company that brought the FP4 to the US loads it with /e/.
Which you can remove easily. Or just organize someone buying itv in Europe.
Wish it was available here in India. i would have totally bought this for my father. Repairing these phones is better than buying new ones when he barely does anything other than WhatsApp, youtube and calls.
Repairing has generally been better than buying new for 98+% of cases in the last 5 years or so.
Nah these glue shut phones are pain in ass. Phones need battery replacement after 3 years don’t want to go to a service center for a simple job.
I didn’t mean in the sense that it’s been more practical. I was replying more to the idea that repairing being better isn’t dependent on a phone getting very light usage which is what they seemed to be impying.
Very few new phone features released in the last 5 years or so add very much real value for very many people.
Threads for Fairphone often fill up with “it’s not going to work if they don’t X.” Lots of people don’t seem to understand that their personal viewpoint can be quite different from other’s.
There are people who are aware of the trade-offs of a Fairphone, but still choose to get one.
I’ve always been in favour of a phone with a shitty camera. I don’t give a fuck about posting on social media, and these days a huge chunk of a phone’s price is determined by how powerful of a camera they were able to cram into it.
I recognize that this apparently sounds insane to most people.
I don’t post on social media either, but my phone have replaced the compact camera that I used to pack for family vacations.
I suspect that’s what most people use their phone camera phone: to take personal photos that will only be shared with family members.
The cameras aren’t even bad, they are perfectly acceptable for a mid-range phone. If you use a GCam port they can look great.
In terms of BOM the cameras usually aren’t even that much. It’s just one factor that allows them to differentiate “premium” phones they can gouge more for.
My socially isolated self rarely if ever needs to take a single picture. I’m doing perfectly fine with the base camera that my old devices came with.
It’s nice to have a decent camera, but honestly, 90% of the people (including myself) are so bad at taking pictures, that the difference between mid range and ultra premium is almost zero.
The only thing that’s really really cool is night mode. My Pixel can take really great photos with extremely low light levels.
Their website doesn’t seem to specify which GSM bands it has (simply “More Bands and Band-Combinations for better reception”). I want to know how much of a given provider’s spectrum I’d be missing out on trying to sneak one of these to the states.
Fairphone 4:
4G supported bands: B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B18/B19/B20/B28/B32/B38/B40/B41/B71
5G supported bands: n1/n3/n5/n7/n8/n20/n28/n38/n41/n71/n77/n78
Fairphone 5:
4G supported bands: B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B20/B28/B32/B38/B40/B41/B42/B48/B66/B71
5G supported bands: n1/n2/n3/n5/n7/n8/n20/n28/n38/n41/n48/n66/n71/n77/n78
Relevant comment about Fairphone 4 in the USA
TL;DR: By adding band 66, Fairphone 5 has better compatibility with cellular network providers in the USA. Band 48 also gives better compatibility with Verizon. T-Mobile is still the best for Fairphone in the USA.
Thanks! Yeah, it looks like it covers T-mobile minus the GHZ/ mmWave bands, which is good for me. A solid consider, especially if they (eventually) drag it over to the states like the Fairphone 5.
Interesting how they went for an IoT SoC (Qualcomm QCM 6490), instead for an SoC that’s actually meant for usage in phones.
They probably did this to be able to get longer Android updates. As a side effect, that means it natively supports desktop Ubuntu and Windows 11 IoT Enterprise.
On the other hand, this is pretty much the only phone using this SoC. (There are three models by a totally unknown brand from India that use the same SoC.)
It’s going to be interesting to see whether that’s an advantage or a disadvantage.
Mhm desktop ubuntu phone sound fun, or even desktop windows
That’s what the SoC supports. Let’s see what the phone ends up supporting. But I agree, it does sound fun.
That’s what I want to see. Real choice in smartphones.